Ocean and Stars
by EreAsha
Summary: Keith decides to research a myth he doesn't believe in, if only because what it brings promises to bring happiness, and because he's too stubborn to quit without solid proof that the myth isn't real. It's more than he can handle when he finds out what, or rather who, comes from the stars' and ocean's meeting.
1. Chapter 1

_Have you heard the tales?_

 _The one of the stars and the ocean?_

 _They say if you find the spot where the ocean meets the stars…_

 _Something good will happen._

 _No one knows what._

 _But…_

 _Is there even a point where the ocean meets the stars?_

Keith woke with a start, his dreams already starting to recede into nothing. He could only vaguely recall it being something about the stars… The sky? Shaking his head, Keith decided to forget about it. It wasn't important. Dreams were just dreams. They weren't even goals to try and achieve. Just whispers of impossible things, mythical things, fantasies. He had more important things to do than to grasp at fleeting thoughts.

The smell of salt drifted into his hut. It reminded him that the ocean was nearby. He could see it from his window. It was relaxing. Somewhere across the room, his phone buzzed, alarm blaring. Keith scowled as he turned to face the window, alarm still going off in the background.

It was so dark out. Probably because it was about three in the morning right now. That was what he had wanted. A time when the stars would be out full force, even if he was annoyed at the sound his phone was blasting from across the room. The stars… Glittering so brightly across the sky. The ocean below reflected the twinkling lights, making it seem as if it had its own galaxies beneath the depths. "Where the ocean meets the stars…" It was a myth, supposedly. One he had decided he was going to solve.

The blaring from his phone was getting annoying, causing Keith to finally drag himself out of bed and across the room so he could shut it off. There was a moment where the silence was unsettling before the noises of the nearby ocean took it over, causing Keith to relax. Why was he so worked up? It had to be that dream; the one he was already forgetting, which annoyed him. Well, he wasn't going to dwell on it and rile himself up. Instead, he quickly dressed, making sure to grab his favorite red jacket as well, and two pieces of toast before heading out.

Keith furrowed his brows as he sat on the beach just outside his house. He didn't know where to start. He never did. The stars were in space, while the ocean was… Well it was the ocean. An annoyed sigh left his lips and he shook his head. Right… That _should_ be proof enough that this myth was nothing more… It should be enough for him to head back to the city, and his brother.

After a moment, Keith shook his head, sighing a soft 'no' as he did. If he returned home without solid and undeniable proof that the myth was or wasn't real, it'd be like admitting delete, which he didn't want to do. It was the stubbornness in him… or maybe he liked being out here, by himself. It could also be that he had a small hope that the 'something good' the myth spoke of really would actually be good. He wanted it to be worth it. To… To make life as beautiful as the stars in the sky, and as calming as the ocean. Though he'd never admit it.

Sighing, Keith flopped down in the sand, staring up at the stars. Tonight, they really were bright. One of them was really bright tonight. Brighter than the rest. He watched that star, curious. It was almost like the start was moving… Dancing even. Then, all at once, the star was gone. No light, and the rest of the stars were the same. Nothing bright or inviting about them.

He shook his head now, a light frown on his face. It was obvious he wasn't getting anywhere tonight. He was tired, and apparently imaging things in the sky. The stars dancing? There was no way. Keith shook his head and stared up the sky, trying to find _any_ hint of what he just saw, but there was nothing. The sky was the same as ever. Frowning, he returned home. He'd just have to try again another night.

When Keith next woke, it was storming. Lightning flashed across the sky, illuminating nothing but the blackness of the clouds, and rain beat against the side of his house. Keith could feel the wind shaking the house, and trees in the distance bending because of the force. Sighing, he checked his phone for the time. The bright '6:07 AM' stared back at him before he locked the phone and set it aside. Great. He couldn't even get three hours of sleep before a storm rolled in, waking him. So much for seeing what the stars did right before sunrise.

 _'There's still about two hours until sunrise. Storms like this never last long.'_ Would the storm and the clouds leave, letting him see the stars? Or would he have to wait another night to try again? It was probably just best to wait for the night. There was no point in getting himself stressed out about the stars. Nothing was there. It was just the vast emptiness of space. Keith sighed and stared out the window, frowning lightly.

Even in a storm, the waved of the ocean moved forward. They were larger and more violent than they usually were, but they still followed a patter. Fall back, rise up, rush forward, and fade away. Repeat. Fall back, rise up, rush forward, and fade away. Repeat. It was almost soothing, in a way; seeing that no matter what, the waves of the ocean would always be in that familiar pattern, unchanging.

Maybe that was one reason he stayed here. Keith didn't believe the myth he was researching one bit. It just didn't make sense. However, it was nice here, and he was too stubborn to return home without solid proof anyway, so it all worked out. Shiro wouldn't let him stay out here if it were dangerous, or if he didn't have any way to care for himself and get the things he needed. Keith sighed again as he rested his chin on the windowsill, and just watched the waves do their dance, as the rain beat down on the window, as a couple of stars broke through the clouds.

Some stars broke through the clouds, but the rain was still pouring, the ocean was still angry, and the clouds weren't dispersing. A soft light broke out over the beach, illuminating the sand in a soft light. Keith was about to turn away when he noticed something. When he noticed _someone_. A man, face-down in the same, waves breaking at his feet. He wasn't moving, and the rain was still beating down.

Keith cursed lightly to himself and shook his head. Some people would just leave the poor guy out there. Keith wasn't one of those people. He couldn't just let him stay out there… Not when it could result in the guy's death. Sighing lightly, Keith grabbed his jacket before heading out. Almost instantly, he was drenched by the rain. Vaguely, he thought about how nice it was that the rain was a soft warmth, instead of the biting cold he expected it to be.

Slowly, against the wind and rain, Keith made his way over to the man. There was no way the other was getting up himself. He looked like he was out cold. No surprise, if he had washed up on the beach in the storm. It was just lucky for this guy that Keith was here. That the storm had woken him up. He kneeled down, hands under the man's armpits as he raised him. It was like trying to lift dead weight. Keith shouldn't have been surprised. The man was out cold, and wet clothes weighed a ton. For a moment, he toyed with the idea of stripping the man of his green jacket so he'd be easier to carry, before discarding the idea. It wouldn't be right.

It was a good thing that Keith was in shape, else he probably wouldn't be able to lift the man. However, after a bit of struggling, he finally managed to get the man leaning against his back. The other's head fell against his shoulder, causing Keith to glare. Not that it did any good, seeing as the man was unconscious, but it made him feel better about the whole ordeal. Keith sighed before dragging the man towards his house. "Right. Let's get you inside."

Keith didn't notice that the stars were hidden again, nor that the ocean seemed to claw at the man's feet as he was dragged away, calling for him back.

* * *

And that's chapter 1. I'm really excited for this fanfiction, and getting back into writing them period.

Just so everyone is aware, yes, the man is Lance lol.


	2. Chapter 2

Keith was glaring at the man. Already, he thought the other was causing much more trouble than he was worth. And the man wasn't even awake yet! However, Keith had had to drag him inside without any help, change him out of the wet clothes, change out of his own wet clothes, and now, to top it all off, he was snoring.

He sighed lightly. At least the snoring meant that he was okay, despite the downpour he had been in. Speaking of which, the downpour was over now. The clouds had parted and the sun was out. Keith didn't want to head outside again, with how humid it was. Instead, he focused his attention the snoring man, trying to figure out anything about him.

Dark skin and brown hair… Tons of freckles across his nose and under his eyes. He was kind of tall and lanky, but besides that, Keith couldn't tell anything about the man. There was only so much he could gleam from watching him, mainly, his appearance. Keith frowned and shook his head before getting up and heading towards the kitchen to get something to eat. There was no use in watching a sleeping man.

"You gonna make something for me too, or leave me to starve?"

Keith jumped, surprised by the noise. He hadn't expected the man to wake. He had looked like he was out cold, and would be for a while. He turned, scowling as he did, and crossed his arms. Now that the man was awake, Keith could tell a bit more about him. For one thing… He had deep blue eyes. It was striking. For another, his voice was annoying.

The man raised one of his eyebrows, frowning lightly. "Wow… Okay. So you're just gonna ignore me. That's really something, you know? After you bring me here and everything, and you can't even answer a simple questions." He sat up, seemingly not surprised to find himself in a new location, or in different clothing. He must have been aware that he had washed up on shore in the rain, or at least made a guess at it.

Keith frowned lightly, and crossed his arms. "I thought you were asleep, so no. I wasn't going to." Maybe… He should make the man something though. He had brought the other inside, and it didn't look like he had anything. "Hey, what's your name?" That was something Keith realized he didn't have… And while he _could_ keep calling this man just 'the man', it didn't seem right.

The man rolled his eyes and stood, stretching. "Geeze. You're cold, aren'tcha? Ah right… Name. I'm Lance. Don't wear it out." He grinned and stretched, standing up. "So what's yours? And before you argue, you can't ask my name and not give me yours. That's like… One of the rudest things you can do, ever."

"…Keith." He was getting a bad feeling about Lance. Something didn't seem right. Maybe it was how carefree Lance seemed, despite waking up in such a new place, with someone he didn't know. "What were you doing out in that storm?" He wanted to ask Lance why he was so calm, but this seemed like a safer alternative.

Lance frowned. Keith could see the way his brows knit together when he was deep in thought. "What _was_ I doing out in that storm?" He stood strait, his arms drawn close to him as his frown deepened. "I was… I was out and…" Lance pressed his lips into a thin line before deflating. "I don't know." His stance slackened and his arms dropped to his sides.

Keith frowned, seeing the sparkle in Lance's eyes die down a bit. "So… You don't remember why you were out in the storm? What about what you were doing before? Taking a walk? On a ship? Even swimming?" He didn't think it was the last one, considering Lance wasn't dressed in a swim suit when Keith had found him. It probably wasn't the boat either… Nothing was supposed to be out, and there was no evidence of a wreck anywhere.

"No. Not… Not really. I think I had been out. Shining really. And then… I felt a pull. Like a tug. And then… Then I was waking up here." Lance shook his head. "It's a good place here. Ocean nearby and stars readily viewable…" He laughed lightly, but Keith couldn't help but think it sounded just the tiniest bit hallow. "I… I should be more upset. This isn't home. You're a stranger. I don't know this place. I don't know how I got here other than a 'pull' and-" Lance choked off a muffled sob.

Keith wasn't sure what to say or really do. He wasn't that good with people. Besides, it wasn't like Lance was completely freaking out or anything. Only… He could see Keith's shoulders shaking, and how labored his breath was. It was like he realized something. The implications of him being here? Keith couldn't pin it. He didn't know what to say or how to help. It made him feel, well, helpless.

"I… I shouldn't be here. Why am I…? Why am I down here? I… There's no reason for me to be!" Lance was _definitely_ panicking, and it was freaking Keith out.

"H-hey! Um… No reason to freak out." He flailed his arms, a bit, trying to find the right words to say. "You were probably ship-wrecked. So uh… If we can get you to town, there'll probably be able to find the rest of the people who were on your ship, as well as where you were supposed to go." The look on Lance's face told Keith he was completely off the mark. That what he was saying wasn't helping. Without the whole picture, Keith couldn't help.

"You don't understand!" Lance shook his head, his eyes wide. "I… I don't know how to explain it." He was calming down now, much to Keith's relief. Maybe what he said had actually helped? Or… Maybe just seeing how panicked he was at Lance's panic caused the other to calm down. "I… Um…" Lance shook his head, frowning. "No one else was hurt. They won't be in any town or with anyone else. They're all still where they're supposed to be. Between the ocean and the stars."

Now, Keith really was confused. "Between… The ocean and the stars?" His mind flashed to the myth he had been searching. Of a place where the ocean and the stars met. Of the happiness one could find there. Many people, including himself, didn't believe there was a point where the ocean and the stars met. It just didn't make any sense. But here was Lance, saying everyone he was with was between the ocean and stars. It was… So very eerily familiar.

The question seemed to calm Lance down more though. He took several deep breathes and wiped his eyes, getting rid of any lingering traces of the panicked tears that hadn't fallen, before sitting down on the bed. "Yeah… My home. My family. They'll all be there, between the two. It's where I'm supposed to be. But…" He shook his head. "Instead I'm here. I… I really don't know why. No one's ever said anything about knocking a star to the ocean before."

There it was again. A star to the ocean. Keith couldn't help but sit a little straighter, eyes on the man he had saved. It still didn't make sense. Lance was very obviously not a star. Even though his eyes seemed to shine like the sky at night, and his freckles looked like constellations across his face… Lance wasn't a ball of gas in the sky. He was a person. A living, breathing person that Keith had found washed up on the beach during a storm. Still, hope clung to him, whispering to him. _'What if Lance is a star that met the ocean? What if he's the answer to the myth?'_ Keith wanted to shake it off. It was ridiculous… And yet here he was, pushing Lance to keep talking. "You're a star?"

"Oh yeah. Well, more like half star. Some of my family are definitely stars though. Other parts are oceans." Lance shrugged, cheering up now. Keith let out a sigh of relief, glad that asking questions helped. "It's kinda weird to explain to people who don't know about it. But everything is a person and so on and so on. So of course if there are people then there are families and communities and all that sorta thing. Which makes it kinda weird that you're the only one here. I mean you don't have a community of any sort here. But time alone can be good too. There's that. I guess you're on a vacation? Geeze… Sorry to just sorta barge in on it then." Lance laughed lightly before sighing and shaking his head. "I… I still shouldn't be here though…"

Keith frowned. He had cheered him up, only to have Lance come right back down in the realization that he shouldn't be here. That still confused Keith a little bit. He wasn't sure what was really going on at all. "Lance… Hey, stay calm. I'll help you figure things out, okay?" What was he doing? Keith couldn't deal with this guy. He was over emotional and talked a lot and his eyes sparkled when he was talking about what he was… He should tell Lance to forget it and get the other to a police man or doctor to help.

"Really?" Damn it… Lance's eyes did sparkle, and he cheered back up immediately. Keith couldn't dash that hope. He'd feel like a monster if he took back his word now. After sighing lightly, Keith nodded.

"Yeah… I'll help."


End file.
